Chapter 20: Coyote Stories
|Preceded by = Chapter 19: Power Station |Followed by = Chapter 21: Blinking}} Coyote Stories is the twentieth chapter in Gunnerkrigg Court. It starts . Summary Coyote Stories concerns itself with a visit by Antimony Carver to Gillitie Wood to meet with laughing, enigmatic and powerful Coyote. The chapter opens in Annie's room, as both she and Katerina Donlan discuss the filthy state of the toy body inhabited by Reynardine. Rey is at first reluctant to be cleaned, but after he finds that the body was built by Surma Carver, he states that "perhaps he could freshen up a little...". Rey is startled to learn that Annie is visiting the Woods, but quickly regains his composure. He is left with Kat for the duration, who implies that he will soon be placed in a washing machine. The scene shifts to the school Armory, where a paranoid Sir Eglamore is trying to fit Annie for a suit of armor, which she refuses. After a dialog with Jones, Annie and Eglamore depart the court under the cover of night, both dressed in formal attire. In conversation, Eglamore reveals that his title of Dragon Slayer is largely ceremonial, as dragon rarely need slaying nowadays. At the edge of the woods, they are met by General Ysengrin who escorts Annie to meet Coyote, leaving Eglamore waiting behind. Coyote meets with Annie, calling her "fire head girl" and proceeds to tell stories about his life. He tells them in his usual fashion, full of laughter, hyperbole and vanity about himself. Along with expressing affection for Surma and sadness at her passing, Coyote confides to Annie that he is the one who created the Annan Gorge with a single stroke of his claw in order to separate the quarreling humans and beasts. He juggles his eyeballs for her, before bringing her the moon itself. Annie pokes it, and it vanishes. She inquires whether or not Coyote really brought her the moon. Coyote's answer is Socratic, and Annie changes the subject rather than reply. Coyote talks to Annie about humans who come to the forest to change their forms, and vice versa. He tells Annie that Reynardine was greatly in love with Surma, and first stole the body of a young man in order to pursue her. coyote said it ended with Rey's capture, and that he did not see Rey again until that recent summer. Coyote explains that his gifts of power are imperfect- Reynardine's body transference kills the host, and Ysengrim's power over trees has left him shaky and aged.Antimony asks coyote about the Court but, with his trademark laughter, Coyote shakes off the question and bids Annie (who he again calls "fire head") goodnight, before trotting off into the woods. Ysengrim returns Annie to Eglamore, who takes her home. Later that night, in the observatory, Annie tells Kat about what she saw, while Kat tells her that there was no recorded lunar activity that night. Annie says that it must have been a trick until Kat, looking through a telescope, notices a big surprise- it appears there is now a giant fingerprint on the moon. Characters introduced in this chapter * Daniel R Schiff (deceased) * Reynardine's original body. 20